Mike Kennedy

Irish Foreign Policy, 1919-1966: From Independence to Internationalism

The reviewers first duty is easily accomplished. This is a feast of entertainment and instruction to the diplomatic historian (and even more to the undiplomatic historian) of Ireland, Britain, Europe, Israel, India, Burma, the British Commonwealth in general, South America, the U.S.A., and the United Nations. It is heavily based on multi-archival evidence, has many enlightening extracts wrested from outer darkness, is largely (if at times suspiciously) judicious in tone, and its errors are minor enough to retain the confidence of the reader without entirely vegetarianising the reviewer. The essays illuminate specific topics without exhausting either subject or onlooker a few of them may have exhausted their authors, and one or two coast easily downhill and there are several clusters of related research-products which supplement without overendorsing one another.